Patrón Highcroft Racing heads to California this week to a happy hunting ground for the Danbury, CT-based team - the longest-running street race in North America - the Long Beach Grand Prix.
The Long Beach event is the shortest race on the American Le Mans Series presented by Tequila Patrón, but is certainly not short on action.
The seaside venue was the setting for Patrón Highcroft Racing`s first ever ALMS class victory.
David Brabham and Scott Sharp were victorious in 2008 with Brabham chasing down the Penske Porsche Spyder pack and pulling off a stunning pass for the lead through traffic with only minutes remaining.
Brabham looked set for another victory last year after setting pole position and charging away with a handy race lead. A controversial pit-lane penalty spoiled the party for Highcroft but the team`s new 2010 star Simon Pagenaud savored the moment as he took his first Series victory for de Ferran Motorsports.
Last year`s pole setter and race winner are now combined for the 2010 championship assault. After the opening race of the season at Sebring where the Brabham/Pagenaud duo combined with Marino Franchitti to grab second in the LMP2 class, the team now sits in joint second place in the overall combined Le Mans Prototype championship.
Starting from next weekend at Long Beach, the next seven races will combine the LMP1 and LMP2 championship classes into a single prototype battle. An interesting on-track fight looms as the faster, yet heavier LMP1 cars do battle with the slower, yet lighter and more nimble LMP2 machines.
The team`s Honda Performance Development factory-backed ARX-01c chassis set the pace in every test, practice and qualifying session at Sebring, only to suffer a delay in the race due to a small electrical fire while enjoying a five lap lead.
Patrón Highcroft Racing is now targeting strong performances at Long Beach and the next Californian event at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in May to push the reigning LMP1 championship team back to the head of the points table before heading to France for its debut at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June.
Teams get an early start to proceedings at Long Beach on Friday, April 16 - hitting the track for a two-hour practice session at 7:15am!
The American Le Mans Series will "book end" the day`s action with a further 30-minute session at 5:00pm followed by prototype qualifying at 6:10pm. Saturday`s 100-minute Tequila Patrón American Le Mans Series at Long Beach event will greet the green flag at 4:40pm.
DAVID BRABHAM
"It will be interesting to see how the traffic plays out at Long Beach because we have some new classes who will be running there for the first time.
"It is certainly tight around there but that is what makes American Le Mans Series racing so good. I try not to think too much about the traffic issues because the slower cars are always going to be there having their own race and it is our job to get past them.
"A couple of years ago when we had our first win for Highcroft Racing the traffic was a huge help - it can certainly give you opportunities.
"Now the LMP1 and LMP2 categories are combined, we won`t really know how that balance will work out until the green flag drops.
"We didn`t get a real idea at Sebring because it was run to full ACO regs but I know our Patrón Highcroft car will be very good at Long Beach.
"Our car is strong on street circuits and extremely fast in the corners. What we gain through the turns, we might lose down the straight but we won`t know exactly until we get out there.
"All of us are really looking forward to the race - especially me because I have some great memories there."
SIMON PAGENAUD
"I am really looking forward to Long Beach weekend. This is one of my favorite venues in the world, and I really like street circuits.
"The intensity while driving is incredible, and it is such an adrenaline rush to drive flat out close to the wall.
"It is a game of boldness, precision, smartness which I really enjoy.
"Long Beach is always difficult with traffic, corners are tight and the GT cars are very fast there, and it will make it challenging for us to get by.
"We have a similar speed down the straight, so it will come down to diving under braking at each corner. This will be a mind game, and a combination of smartness and awareness will be key. However, it is easier said than done.
"Long Beach is so special to me. This is where I raced for the first time in the US in 2006 with Walker Racing in Atlantic. I claimed pole position on debut. Then in 2007 I took third place in only my second Champ Car start and then last year I took my first ALMS victory with Gil de Ferran."
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